Benefits
by Just a Little Spark
Summary: They are friends with benefits. It's simple science, until they start to catch feelings. (Tomadashi One Shot.) (Would be rated T if that was a thing. No smut.)


_Disclaimer: I'm going to assure you all that this one shot has no smut in it – passionate make-out sessions, yes. Mentions of sex, yes. But no actual smut will occur in this one shot. Thus, the T rating. That being said, I think this should be T+ if there ever was such a thing._

 _Anyways, enjoy!_

(*)

The first time was utter, utter chaos.

She was vodka, smoke, and anger. She was the drop of the beat during an EDM track, that feeling you got in your stomach when a rollercoaster flipped in a direction you weren't expecting, the adrenaline rush you get when someone chases you. She was fire and ice, Christmas in July, the whole shebang. And he _loved_ it.

He was whisky, electricity, and passion. He was the sweet shudder after a shot of alcohol, the person your attention is immediately drawn to when you're in the middle of a crowded street, the warm feeling you get in front of a fire. He was spice and sugar, lightning during a rain shower, a surprising conundrum. And she _loved_ it.

They were _electricity_ – you only felt the electricity once you held on to it and feel it rush through your body, lighting every part of you on fire. The thing about electricity is, once you feel it for the first time, it's too late. As they tangled together for the first time, no words were said. It was clumsy, weak, but full of fire, never mind the fact that both of them were so utterly drunk, so utterly _gone_. They were raw. They were honest.

That would be the last time they were honest. (For a while.)

The second time was a mistake, as are most second times. He says no, pushes her away, she growls and pulls him towards her, begging him with her eyes to let her stay. He watches her as she shudders against him, feels his heart go to pieces because this was not the way he intended this to be, and regrets every second of it.

He lets her stay. And he lets her leave.

The third time was something he wanted, something he considered to be 'fair' since she's already done this to him. She welcomes him with open arms; kisses his wounds and smooths over the ruffled feathers. She knows him by now, and she's frightened that she's capable of soothing someone. Frightened that she knows what calms him, and what makes him feel safe.

She lets him stay the night. And he's there when she wakes up.

The fourth time comes and goes, and they're still wondering why they're keeping this up. She wonders why his kisses are like fire, he wonders why her touch is like ice. They wonder why they've suddenly adapted to each other, wonder how he suddenly knows what makes her keel over in pleasure, wonder why she slowly opens up to him like a flower.

The fifth, sixth, and seventh times happen, and suddenly, they're forced to face the truth. That there's no way they're going to get out of each other's lives now.

(*)

 _The twenty-sixth time._

"We should stop doing this," she breathed in between kisses, her hands skillfully removing his shirt and tossing it towards a remote corner of his room. She entangled her fingers in his dark hair, marveling (as usual) at how soft his hair was. She'd never tell him this, since she knew he'd never let it go.

"Agreed," he replied, face muffled against her shoulder, his hands running down her sides, warming the cool skin underneath her shirt. "I think we also said the same thing a few weeks ago." He kissed a small birthmark that rested on her shoulder. "Maybe longer than that."

"A few _months_ ago," she corrected him, sighing happily as he nipped at her collarbone. "This is the last – _oh._ "

"Last what?" She could practically see his teasing smile, quirking up in that little half smile that she absolutely did _not_ find adorable. "You were saying?"

"We can talk about that later." He very nearly laughed at her eager response, amused at how flippant she was being. He flipped her over, pressing her back against the mattress. She squeaked – _very_ unlike her, and he can't help but grin before kissing her on the nose. She smiled back at him, and pulled him down for another long, lingering kiss.

"Definitely."

(*)

"So we're _really_ just going to ignore the elephant in the cafeteria?" Honey demanded the next morning.

GoGo meticulously studied her breakfast of blueberry waffles and bacon, while Tadashi paused in the middle of his own breakfast of Lucky Charms cereal to actually look ashamed. It was currently the morning after, but the college students were having breakfast in the cafeteria… and the unflattering fluorescent lights just made Tadashi's little 'love mark' a bit more noticeable to the very observant biology student.

"Honey," Wasabi sighed while he buttered his toast. "We talked about this before. Both of them are consenting adults and can do whatever they want, no matter how straining it is on their friends, and despite the fact that it seems to bother their friends more than it bugs them." Wasabi, who was a pre-law student, paused to look at GoGo from his side of the table. "GoGo, you missed a spot." He pointed at his own neck, and GoGo fished out a compact from her messenger bag to apply more foundation over her hickey.

"Tadashi, hold this for me," she said, handing it to him.

"Is this okay?" he asked, holding it at the wrong angle. GoGo rolled her eyes, and moved his hand until it was facing the right area.

" _How can you two be so casual about this_?" Honey hissed, completely forgetting about her breakfast.

Fred patted her reassuringly on the back. "There, there, Honey. I'm sure they'll figure it out soon. Besides. I think the point of friends with benefits is being casual despite the intimacy?"

"Soon?" Honey practically had steam coming out of her ears. "They've been going at this for more than a year – I think 'soon' should have been a few months ago. _Soon_ is not applicable to them anymore."

Fred tsked, shaking his head at GoGo and Tadashi. "Now look what you've done. You two have made the mom friend mad. You all know what happens when the mom friend gets mad."

Wasabi sighed. "Guys, I'd _love_ to talk about Tadashi and GoGo's complicated 'friends with benefits' label, but I'm eating right now. And I'm actually enjoying it."

"We've told you guys a million times that we'd actually prefer _not_ to talk about it," GoGo pointed out. "You're the ones who go batshit crazy whenever something happens."

It was true. About a year ago, when a very drunk Tadashi and GoGo slept together for the very first time, Honey had actually been _thrilled_. Honey had wanted Tadashi and GoGo to get together since the five of them sat next to each other during freshmen orientation. The blonde had been disappointed when the two had assured her that it was a 'one-time thing', and felt subsequently relieved when they also told her that it wouldn't make their friendship awkward.

But months passed. Both of them _continued_ having sporadic 'one-night' things as the months went by. It was annoying Honey day by day, since they might as well start _dating_ since they'd already done the unspeakable dozens of times. Wasabi and Fred were innocent bystanders, and so it left Honey, the self-proclaimed mom friend, more emotionally invested in Tadashi and GoGo's relationship than everyone else.

"Funny how the word 'million' is actually accurate," Fred cackled. Honey glared at him disapprovingly. "Honey. Seriously. They're doing _nothing_ illegal, like Wasabi said. Let them have their fun."

Tadashi had the audacity to blush.

GoGo rolled her eyes. "We're not hurting anyone, Honey."

Honey had a look in her eyes that looked wiser than her twenty-two years. "Not yet, GoGo. Not yet."

(*)

It didn't hit them until about a couple of weeks later that Honey's words had burrowed deep into their hearts, and found some dark place to gather and fester. Five minutes into their post-coital cuddling, Tadashi is struck by lightning. _I want more than this._ A few minutes later, GoGo has completely the opposite reaction. _What am I doing?!_

"Look, I have a test to study for," GoGo announced, practically leaping out of her bed and searching for something clean to wear.

Tadashi sat up in bed, his immaculate hair disheveled. "Hmm? I don't think you do. Do you?" Just so soon after his revelation, Tadashi found himself a bit hurt that she was running out on him like this. Sure, this was something she'd done before, but now that he'd caught feelings… _Oh, no._ Tadashi paled. _I caught feelings._ His heart _aches_ , but he can't help but smile at the sight of GoGo frantically running around her room looking for jeans. _Oh, boy, Hamada. You got it bad._

Oblivious to Tadashi's peril, GoGo continued the task of getting away from him as soon as humanely possible. "It's just that Professor Callaghan's been threatening the class with an essay portion for the next quiz," she lied through her teeth, searching for her missing jeans. _Get out, get out, get out, get out._ "I don't want to be unprepared."

"Oh." Tadashi, who was studying robotics, was usually daunted by GoGo's Engineering classes. They were different and yet the same, which bugged him. But for all of his distaste towards the classes themselves, he found himself wanting to say anything, anything at _all_ , to make her stay. "I can help you study."

She poked her head out of the t-shirt she was in the middle of putting on, her face incredulous. "You? Help me study? You hate the thought of even _looking_ at my books."

Tadashi shrugged, running a hand through his hair (GoGo found the action very distracting, and promptly turned around to look for a brush). "I don't know, it's just… you look like you're in an awful hurry."

She froze in the middle of brushing her hair, and avoided his gaze. "I am. It's just... I need to study," she blurted out, trying not to betray her true feelings. _This has the potential to become a huge train wreck, and I'd rather stop it now while we can, instead of having it blow up in our faces later._ "This isn't the first time I've skipped out on you, you know that," she reminded him, a slight blush on her cheeks. During the first few weeks of their 'arrangement', GoGo had tried to sneak out of his room before he awoke – _tried_ being the operative word.

"Yeah, but this is different," Tadashi sighed, lying back down in her bed as he stared up at the ceiling. "This time it's like you're trying to avoid me." _Stay, stay, stay._

 _Please, please,_ please _don't have him look at me with that 'wounded puppy' look_ , GoGo thought, before turning around to face him (and to note, with chagrin, that he _was_ looking at her with his 'wounded puppy' look). "I'm not avoiding you, okay?"

"Do you think this is a mistake?" He blurted out before he could stop himself. GoGo froze, taking a few seconds to reply.

"Do _you_ think this is a mistake?" She parroted back at him, her fists clenching.

He exhaled, and shook his head, avoiding her glance. "I could never say that about you." He rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Just… just go. I'll lock up your room when I'm finished changing."

She sighed, and left the room without a single word. It was only until the door had clicked shut behind her that both of them realized that she had yet to answer his question.

It left a dull ache in her heart as she exited her building, making her way down a route that was familiar to her. She didn't _want_ to hurt him. Even before the two of them had hooked up, they were close – best friends, even. It was him who brought her mint chocolate ice cream when she was feeling sick, him who let her borrow his laptop for two entire weeks when she needed to work on a project, it was… Tadashi. And you couldn't _want_ to hurt Tadashi, whatever the circumstances were, because that just made you a douche.

GoGo knew that Tadashi would put so much of his heart into this pseudo-relationship of theirs. No matter how many times they'd repeat the words 'No strings attached', she knew that he still thought it meant something, and it made her feel guilty. She _knew_ that was what he was thinking, because he knew _him_. Did she stop him? No. Did she stop herself? No. Should she have stopped him?

Oh, most definitely.

GoGo arrived at a small house that was quite literally a stone's throw away from campus, and knocked twice on the door. Honey opened it a few minutes later, dressed in yellow pajamas, her red glasses crooked on her forehead. "Oh, boy."

"Honey, it's only nine in the evening. Why do you look like you're about to sleep?" GoGo pushed past her friend, and walked into the warmth that was Honey's home, knowing that the blonde behind her was probably already aware of what was going on.

"Pajamas are comfortable, GoGo. You should give it a try!" Honey chirped, the cheerful tone in her voice not meeting her eyes. She observed as GoGo slumped into the kitchen, and placed ( _threw_ ) her bag onto a chair, and made way for the refrigerator. Honey was easily one of the luckiest people to live, having a house that was close to campus. It was for this reason that her home was usually invaded by her friends whenever they needed an escape.

Fred liked to binge watch seasons of Family Guy on her wide-screen television when his roommate was giving him a hard time. Wasabi had taken to watering the plants in her backyard whenever he was feeling particularly pressured. Tadashi liked holing up in Honey's small reading room (and using the red beanbag chair, specifically) if he was swamped in work and needed a breather. And GoGo? GoGo liked finishing off whatever was in the fridge.

She eyed her smaller friend as GoGo sat down, a plate of reheated macaroni and cheese in her hands. " _Why_ didn't you finish this? This is food for the gods."

Honey sat across GoGo, knowing that GoGo liked to flail her arms around when she was exasperated. "You know me, GoGo. Small portions." She waited for GoGo to start talking about whatever was on her mind, as she usually did whenever someone showed up with obvious issues in mind.

It took GoGo five forkfuls of macaroni and cheese to finally start talking. "Honey, what was I _thinking_?" GoGo groaned loudly, setting the plate to the side so she could bang her forehead against Honey's table.

Slightly concerned, Honey reached out to stop GoGo from hurting herself. "Don't hurt yourself. And please, elaborate."

GoGo sighed. "You probably already know what I'm talking about."

"No, you tell me something so that I don't make rapid assumptions," Honey replied, placing her hands underneath her chin. "So… what's on your mind?"

GoGo pursed her lips. "I think I… I've made a _huge_ miscalculation in this… this friends with benefits thing." She mumbled the last few words, but from the way Honey's eyes suddenly narrowed, she knew that her friend had heard her. GoGo sighed loudly, and rested her head on the table.

"GoGo…" Honey sighed, and reached over to pat her friend on the head. "Sweetie, what makes you say that?"

"It's… it's hard to explain," GoGo replied, her voice muffled. Honey strained to hear. "Think of it like I just want to jump out of the car that's speeding towards a brick wall… preferably _way_ before it, you know, actually smashes into the brick wall."

Honey fought back the urge to say _I told you so_ , and instead, patted GoGo's head a bit rougher than she should have. "Sometimes you don't have that choice, you know."

"Well, what if I _want_ to make that choice?"

"I think you might want to consider that even though _both_ of you drove the metaphorical car towards the metaphorical brick wall in the _first_ place," Honey said lightly, "The other passenger might not want to unbuckle his metaphorical seatbelt."

GoGo visibly cringed, and she raised her head back up to meet Honey's unwavering gaze. "It… crossed my mind."

"Look, GoGo. We both know him, even though you obviously know him _way_ more than I do," she paused, and GoGo flushed. "And I just want to ask you something. Is leaving him in the dust like this the way you want this to end? Do you just _never_ want to see him again after this?"

"No!" She replied immediately, and bit her thumbnail. "I still want to talk to him. I still want to be friends with him."

"You can't have both," Honey said as gently as possible. "I know it's rough, but you can't. You can't just abandon him like this and just expect him to hold up a mirror for you while you dust away someone else's hickey in the near future."

GoGo blushed. "It's not _like_ that – it's just – I'm not going to look for someone else _right now_ ," she spluttered, crossing her arms over her chest.

"That's not my point. It might not happen tomorrow, but it'll happen in the future. Maybe a few months, or even _years_ from now. The concept is still the same. It'll never be the way it was before. But separating yourself from him, especially when both of you are in this kind of situation… it's not as simple as just dropping everything to run away – he's your _friend_. And you don't do that to friends." Honey sighed. "If this guy were a complete stranger, I'd have different advice for you, and you know that. But he's not. This is _Tadashi_."

"Sweet, gentle, baby Tadashi," GoGo grumbled.

Honey chose to ignore her. "And I know that you know the two of you have such a great friendship – _without_ the benefits. I don't know how both of you are going to deal with this, and I'd rather not command someone to do something when they're asking for advice. But I'm serious when I say this. Please, GoGo, _please_ don't just drop everything and run out on him. At least try to talk to him. Find some way to ease out of this gracefully, give him closure or something. Because I _know_ what it's like not to have closure, and it really sucks."

"Gee, thanks for making me feel guiltier than I was feeling on the way here," GoGo replied sarcastically, but knew that Honey's talk really _had_ given her some retrospect. "You're right, though. _Ugh._ Can you at least give me a script to follow, or…"

After a vehement 'No, you need to learn how to work this out yourself, and _besides_ , it would sound much more natural if _you_ came up with a break up speech', GoGo voraciously finished the plate of macaroni and cheese, and left Honey's home an hour later, feeling literally fuller, but figuratively lighter. Honey was right, GoGo mused on the way back to her building. How could she have been so idiotic as to think that everything would be easier if she just ran like the coward she was?

She should have never gotten the idea in her head. Tadashi deserved better than that, better than her. It pained her to think that she wasn't going to be on the receiving end of Tadashi's amazingly spot-on kisses anymore, but it really was for the best. Was it? "No, no, no. Stop it. You need to get it through your thick skull," GoGo said to herself. "There's no way this will work. There's no way this _can_ work. Both of you are better off as friends without the benefits."

 _Friends without the benefits._ She repeated this mantra as she climbed the stairs up to her dorm, trying desperately to steel her resolve before she actually reached her room. Luckily, she didn't have a roommate, so she could talk to herself all she wanted once she was safe inside the comfort of the room. Before she opened up the door, though, she hesitated. There was still a nagging feeling deep inside that she couldn't quite place. She didn't want to end this, but _why_?

She reached into the pocket of her bag for her key, only to realize that the door to her room was slightly ajar. She groaned. "Damn it, Tadashi," she said under her breath, hoping that no one had taken advantage of her unlocked room. GoGo opened the door, only to be greeted by the sight of Tadashi sitting at her table, a pensive look on his face. "Tadashi?"

He jumped up, surprised at her sudden appearance. "GoGo! I didn't expect you to be back so soon," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I _was_ going to leave, but then I remembered that you seemed pretty stressed, so…" He walked over to her mini-fridge, and brought out a pint of Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream, presenting it to her like a trophy. "I just thought you needed something to make you feel better."

 _We need to stop doing this. I need to stop taking advantage of you and I need to stop needing you and I want us to remain friends. I can't see us doing that, but I need you to understand that it's for the best. I'd rather end it like this now then have us regret that we even started this in the first place. At least now, we can say that we have a lot of very good, very sexy memories with each other, but this has to stop now. I need you, but I can't do this anymore because you deserve better than a simple bed warmer. You need a girlfriend_.

Words, meaningless words that she'd planned out so smoothly on the way here. Words that tried to make their way out of their mouth, but _couldn't_. All because of a stupid pint of ice cream, and the way he had just automatically gone out for it, instead of storming off like anyone else would have. He _cared_ about her, why else would he have done that? He didn't need a bed warmer, he _definitely_ needed a girlfriend.

Why couldn't GoGo be _both_?

She knew he hadn't verbalized the thought, but she saw it in his eyes. She saw it before he kissed her, saw it when they met for breakfast with the gang every morning. He wanted _more_ , and he'd never tell her. He'd be afraid that having her _this_ way would be the _only_ way. It pained her to think that he was going through this, but she'd make it better.

It was her turn to want him _more_ than just a bed warmer.

Mistaking her silence for something else, Tadashi immediately rushed into the conversation, the pint of ice cream still in his hands. "I mean – I don't know _exactly_ what's going on… I mean, I know you said you had a test for Callaghan's class, but you um, you kinda left your book here in the room, which is why I guessed you _didn't_ have a test… so I assumed that it was something else, maybe a family problem, or maybe you're on your period, or PMS-ing, even though I know that you're _not_ on your period," he blushed, ducking his head in shame as he rambled. "Maybe it's something I did, and I'm sorry if it's anything I said, or maybe it's just memories, or maybe you're feeling nostalgic tonight, but… But I just wanted you to… to have something _nice_ to come to when you got back here."

Her heart cracked. _Oh, she didn't deserve this, not by a mile._

"So I'll…" He chuckled nervously, and placed the ice cream carton in her hands, making sure she was holding on to it before he let go. "I'll just leave you alone with this, and I guess I… I'll see you tomorrow morning at breakfast? As usual?" He smiled encouragingly at her, only to have his smile fade little by little every second GoGo took to reply. Dejected, Tadashi awkwardly patted her on the shoulder, before turning around to exit her room. "Good night, GoGo."

"Tadashi, wait!" Her brain finally connected with her mouth, and she watched as he paused to turn around, trying not to look hopeful. "Uh… It's just that I…" She tried to look nonchalant, and probably failed. "Did you want to share this with me?"

He looked surprised at her offer, and he slowly shut the door before fully facing her. "You want me to… stay?"

She nodded briskly, setting the pint of ice cream on the table so she could walk around her little kitchen to search for spoons. "I mean, it's not like either of us have any life-altering things to do tomorrow, so I thought we could just… chill."

 _Was this a dream_? Tadashi asked himself, and pinched himself when he was sure she wasn't looking in his direction. _Okay, not a dream. Wait. Make sure she's actually saying she wants to share the pint of ice cream with me while we just_ talk _, not have some kind of kinky ice cream eating marathon without clothes._ "Um… chill?"

GoGo blushed, as if she knew that that was _exactly_ what he was thinking. "Yeah. I meant _chill_. Like, I'm pretty sure I have some illegally obtained copies of slasher films in my laptop, thanks to Pirate Fred," she said, finally finding clean utensils. "I think it would be nice to just… to just be _us_ for a while."

Tadashi's shoulders sagged in relief, and he nearly jumped with joy as he moved to get the ice cream from the counter. "Right. I'd like that. I really do."

She smirked, heading for the bed. "You don't really have to sound so happy, Tadashi."

He looked a bit cautious as he followed her. "The bed…?"

GoGo rolled her eyes. "Contrary to popular opinion," she said as she lay across her bed, reaching for her laptop underneath the bedside table, "Beds _can_ be used for other, non-sexual things."

"I knew that!" He protested, standing next to her bed. He was blushing, and GoGo couldn't help but find this amusing. "It's just that… the ice cream will drip all over the place, and…"

"It's laundry day for me tomorrow anyway," GoGo shrugged, and finally balanced her laptop on her lap. She patted the space on the bed next to her. "Come on, sit."

He smiled wryly at her before getting on her bed, sitting close to her. "What am I, a dog?"

She looked up to stick her tongue at him, and on a whim, leaned against him before typing in her password. He adjusted immediately, moving his arm so it rested on her shoulders, using the same arm to move her even closer to him. She blushed at the contact, and wondered why she was feeling giddy. Lord knew that they'd done so much more with their clothes _off_ , so why was he suddenly affecting her like this with these simple gestures?

Maybe GoGo's subconscious had always kind of longed for these interactions with him.

"Psycho?" She asked him, finally locating the appropriate folder on her desktop. He nodded, placing the ice cream on his lap and successfully opened it with one hand.

"The perfect classic," he agreed. "Where are those spoons?" She handed them to him, and he took an experimental spoonful. "Oh, _wow_. This is good. I see why you say this can cure all ills."

She made a face. "You've been bringing this ice cream to me for the past few years and you've never actually tried it?"

"I've never really liked mint," he admitted, handing her the other spoon as she absentmindedly leaned against his chest. "I guess you've converted me."

She smiled then, and no other words were said as the two of them watched the classic slasher film together. Midway through the film, when the ice cream tub was safely out of the way, and the laptop now on Tadashi's lap, he nudged her gently. "GoGo."

"Mm?" She'd shifted her position a good ten minutes ago, her other arm lying lazily across his stomach as she lightly embraced him.

"I was wondering," he said, eyes still focused on the screen. His heart was beating loudly in his chest, and he was sure that she could feel it underneath his sweatshirt. "You know how Fred was saying he wanted to watch the new The Purge movie with the whole gang this weekend?"

She nodded slowly, wondering where he was going with this. "Yeah…"

"Well… I was going to ask you if… maybe we could just ditch them this Saturday so that the two of _us_ could watch it. Alone?" His voice broke, and he immediately cursed himself for sounding so juvenile. "This isn't the way I wanted to ask you, I swear – "

"Sure."

"It has to be the mint, it's probably making me say things weird… wait, did you say yes?"

She had the ghost of a smile on her face as she unconsciously tightened her hold on him. "I did. I think it's time we changed up our friendship a little bit, hm?" It dawned on GoGo that maybe she really _did_ need just a little nudge in the right direction. Here she was, snuggling with him, and it felt like the most natural thing in the world to do. Maybe, just _maybe_ if she was nudged a little bit more, she would fall of the edge. And it would be a beautiful, wonderful fall.

He laughed, and couldn't help but kiss her on the top of her head. "Yeah. I think so." After a comfortable silence, he decided to tease her. "So now that we're changing it up a bit, probably stepping down a few rungs on the dating ladder, does that mean we're not going to have any more sexy times, or… _ouch_!" She pinched him in the side, making clucking noises with her tongue as she shook her head.

"Let's talk about that later."

(*)

 _Bonus Ending:_

"Tadashi and GoGo are late to breakfast," Wasabi noted the next Monday morning, eating a bacon and egg sandwich while simultaneously reading a large law textbook.

"Is it just me, or are they spending an awful lot of time together?" Fred asked Honey. "I mean, they ditched us last minute the other day, and I just assumed that they were hooking up, but…"

"Let's _not_ talk about this, _please_ ," Honey begged. "We _really_ don't need to talk about their rampant sex life at the breakfast table." Honey wasn't sure what she felt about this. She _had_ told GoGo not to drop Tadashi and run, but she hadn't expected them to keep _doing_ it. She sighed, bringing her attention back to her chocolate chip pancakes. It was tough being the mom friend. You had to advise people, but like a mom, you couldn't get too emotionally attached. It was _hell_.

Suddenly, in Honey's periphery, she noticed two figures, one tall and one significantly shorter, entering the cafeteria at the same time. Ready to lecture them on being late for the most important meal of the day, Honey swiveled around in her seat to look at them… only to gape in surprise to see that they had entered the cafeteria _holding hands_. _Finger. For. Finger_.

" _Dude_. Seriously? _Nice_ ," Fred grinned, holding up a fist. GoGo, who was closer, bumped their entwined hands against Fred's closed fist. "We were waiting for you two to _finally_ figure it out." Fred elbowed Wasabi, who hadn't looked up from his book. "Wasabi. Check it _out_."

Wasabi looked up, and smiled genuinely as he saw the new couple. "That's cute, congratulations, guys! Sorry if I'm not exactly enthusiastic, huge exam coming up. We can talk later," he commented lightly, and turned his attention back to his law book.

"Sorry for skipping out on you guys last Saturday," Tadashi apologized. "We didn't really want to _tell_ you guys anything was happening yet, so we skipped out and watched it by ourselves." He brought GoGo's hand up to his mouth to brush a light kiss against her knuckles, smiling. "I take first dates pretty seriously."

Honey finally made an unintelligible noise – a squeak, if you will, and hurriedly wiped at her eyes with a napkin. "Honey, are you… crying?" GoGo asked, concerned.

" _No_!" Honey exclaimed, dabbing carefully underneath her eyes. "You two are _definitely, absolutely_ , not making me cry. At all!" As Honey watched the two of them sit down in their usual spots at the breakfast table, (hands _still_ connected) she couldn't help but smile.

Who knew that being friends with benefits would finally, finally lead up to this?

(*)

 _Ahhhhhh it's finished. Wow. What a wild ride. Talk about reverse fluff._

 _I'm so glad I got this out of my system – and actually_ finished _it. If only you guys could take a peek at the 20+ unfinished Tomadashi oneshots in my laptop at the moment… the amount is staggering. I really need to pick up the pace._

 _Anyways, this is one of the few times I don't usually follow my traditional 'domestic-y' kind of writing and AU – it's obviously more sexual-but-not-quite-sexual (oh god but I could never write smut about them) than my other fics, and since I think it's rated and written a bit differently than the shots in Ikigai, I've opted to exclude this one from that oneshot collection._

 _Shout out to Ayin and Kerou for encouraging me to write this despite the fact that I obviously need to brush up on my 'describing passionate make-outs' skills. I need practice (wink, wink) omg no. Anyways, I'm already aware that this one shot has too many metaphors in it, but I don't really care. I think that's my style. I actually_ love _metaphors._

 _As usual, I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it! As always, I've finished writing this at 1 in the morning so I'm not bothered with spell check. Kudos to people who can point out some corrections nicely!_


End file.
